LET'S look at 2002-3: a successful, potentially fantastic season. But who will win the player of the year award?

First of all, we can rule out anyone who has played less than 20 games.

This excludes Dan Bennett (a bright start but then went missing), Scott Green (if we'd had him right from the off, perhaps we wouldn't have struggled in early season), Shaun Holmes (a very effective, regular substitute), Lee Jones (the jury is still out), Hector Sam (as unpredictable as ever) and Paul Whitfield (a star in the making, I have no doubts).

That leaves us with one goalkeeper, four defenders, two wing-backs, four midfielders and two strikers.

Dibble may be getting on a bit but, all things considered, he has been an excellent signing. He's fallible, but I hope he stays another year.

At the back, things have got better and better as the season has gone on.

Pejic is not everyone's cup of tea, but Roberts has shown himself to be solid and increasingly mature, Carey has displayed amazing resilience and determination, while Lawrence is Wrexham's very own Renaissance Man.

In the final quarter of the season, the Irishman and the Trinidadian have looked particularly impressive and they have inspired a spectacular unbeaten run that has left the Dragons on the verge of automatic promotion.

On the flanks, the Edwardses have definitely had their moments. Paul had a purple patch in mid-season, while Carlos has produced frequent magical moments. At last, the Reds seem to have two effective wide men and a nice symmetrical shape when they move forward.

In the centre of the park, things have been wonderfully consistent. Thomas has his merits but has lost many of his fans on the terraces, while Barrett has been Barrett - hardworking but slightly anonymous during the first half of the season, and then injured during the rest.

Ferguson and Whitley have been the mainstays of the midfield. The Scot has settled down: he's shouting less at referees and doing more intelligent work in the centre circle. Whitley has had his critics and, curiously, has looked less influential in the middle than at right-back; but still he's dug in and done a lot of unglamorous tidying-up in the central third.

Upfront, it's a case of compare and contrast. Trundle is the man with the charisma and the reputation, but he has only really come alive in the last 10 games. Morrell is the modest, unassuming workhorse, but he has stormed his way to the top of the goalscoring charts, and now looks super-confident in front of goal.

A couple of months ago I would have gone for: 1. Morrell, 2. Carlos Edwards, and 3. Paul Edwards. Now I'm not so sure. I think that Dibble, Carey and Lawrence have come into their own in recent weeks and I wouldn't be surprised if one of this trio knocks the ex-Swindon man off third spot.